Question

Do you suppose Darwin, one of the greatest scientists of all time, really did fools experiments? Or did he do experiments that were so simple and basic that other people just thought they were foolish?

　　Sometimes, people think they already know the answer to a question or the solution (解決辦法) to a problem. Sometimes, they really do know an answer or a solution, but without thinking they are important.

　　Charles Darwin didn’t settle for (滿足于) just thinking he knew something. And, he believed all things could be important however simple they seemed to be.

　　Suppose you drop sheets of paper that are of exactly the same size and shape. If you drop them at the same time in the same place, they will fall in the same way. Now make one of the sheets of paper into a tight (緊的) little ball and let it drop along with the other sheets. What happens? You have done an experiment that is so simple that you might think it couldn’t be worth anything.

　　But this simple experiment is important. It explains part of our present-day understandings of physics, ideas that were worked out long ago by Galileo and Newton. And these understandings set aside some of ancient Greek physics.

Scientist sometimes stops to look at very simple things and to think very hard about them. Even the simplest idea, which we might think is foolish, can shake the foundations of science.

1. The passage tells us that Charles Darwin ____.

　　A. was a great English scientist

　　B. always liked doing the experiments that others thought difficult

　　C. thought even the simplest thing was important

　　D. didn’t get well with others

2. The phrase “set aside” most probably means____ .

　　A. throw away      B. store up

　　C. put to use        D. realize

3. The author of the passage tries to ________.

　　A. convince us that Charles Darwin, Galileo and Newton are the greatest scientists in the world

　　B. draw the conclusion that basic sciences are simple things

　　C. prove that two sheets of paper, with the same size and shape, will fall at the same speed

　　D. draw our attention to everyday happenings around us

4Which of the following is TRUE?

　　A. Darwin really did fools experiments.

　　B. According to some people Darwin did foolish experiments.

　　C. It is believed by all the people that things could be important though they seemed to be simple.

　　D. Galileo and Newton worked out ancient Greek physics.

Answer 1

【小題1】C

【小題2】A

【小題3】D

【小題4】B

解析:

1. 【小題1】本題為判斷題。短文并沒有說 Charles Darwin是哪個國家的科學家，可排除A；由第二段可知別人認為Darwin的許多實驗不值得做，可把B排除；文中沒有論述Darwin與別人相處的事情，可排除D。由“he believed all things could be important however simple they seemed to be.(Para 3)”可推出答案C。

2. 【小題2】 本題為詞義猜測題。由上文可知作者認為做這個簡單實驗是重要的，它解釋了目前人們對于物理方面的理解。因此這些理解當然是推翻了一些希臘古典物理學的觀點。由此可推知set aside與throw away同義。

3. 【小題3】 本題為主旨大意題。短文的最后一段點明最簡單的事情都可能動搖科學的根基，意在告訴讀者要留意身邊的每一件事，哪怕它非常簡單。

4. 【小題4】 本題為細節考查題。短文第一段第二句“Or did he do experiments that were so simple and basic that other people just thought they were foolish?”明確告訴我們，有些人認為Darwin做了愚蠢的實驗。